From left to right, Taraji P. Henson as Cookie Lyon and guest star Marisa Tomei as Mimi Whiteman in the “The Devils Are Here” Season Two premiere episode of EMPIRE airing Wednesday, Sept. 23 on FOX. (Chuck Hodes, Provided by FOX).

“Empire,” the ratings phenomenon and cultural touchstone of TV last season, returns for season 2 on Fox Sept. 23 (8 p.m. on KDVR-Channel 31) still addicting and with a number of hot guest stars.

In just the first few episodes, Marisa Tomei plays a corporate player with an eye for the girls while organizing a hostile takeover; Chris Rock plays (completely seriously!) a prison rival of Lucious Lyon (Terrence Howard); Chris “Ludacris” Bridges portrays over-confident prison Officer McKnight; Becky G plays a hot Latina singer; Andre Royo (“The Wire”) is wonderfully sleazy as a well connected lawyer, and Pitbull guest stars as himself.

No spoiler, but from the hint of a flashback, it looks like Kelly Rowland (formerly of Destiny’s Child) has a juicy subplot coming up.

Dori Mann of Fort Collins holds a small sign as she waits with her daughter Carlynn Rockwell, 12, to audition for Fox’s “X-Factor” reality TV singing competition at the Denver Coliseum on May 14, 2013 in Denver. (Joe Amon, The Denver Post)

The list of media prohibitions is hilarious. No video, photos or recording inside; no revealing contestants names or telling if they move forward or are rejected; no reporting which judge says yes or not to any contestant; no reporting on all auditions, “please select just a few to refer to.”

Joanne Ostrow has been watching TV since before "reality" required quotation marks. "Hill Street Blues" was life-changing. If Dickens, Twain or Agatha Christie were alive today, they'd be writing for television. And proud of it.